It's Not Over (I'll Try to Do it Right This Time Around)
by ryotanimoto16
Summary: Fushimi tensed as he realized the slate was actually glowing on it's own, and not the usual bluish green glow it sometimes had either. The colors were shifting and changing consistently: white, blue, green, red, yellow and all the colors in between. The glow seemed to steadily rise and fall in brightness. "Almost like a heartbeat" , he thought with a shudder.
1. Trouble on My Left, Trouble on My Right

The main members of SCEPTOR 4 stood in silence in the basement of their headquarters. The basement level was darker than the upper levels and contained the laboratories they needed to run tests on evidence for their cases and research. It also contained their jail cells (which were still under construction thanks to the late red king). Captain Reisi Munkata's lips were pressed together roughly while he stood as still as a statue. His lieutenant and a majority of his clansmen were in a similar state, with the exception of Fushimi.

Fushimi sighed and let out a soft "che _"._ "This is gonna be annoying" he muttered bitterly. He pulled out his PDA and watched a video taken from one of the security cameras in lab 3. The footage showed the once shattered pieces of the Dresden Slate slowly move back into their proper place, repairing the destroyed artifact. He looked back up at the Slate, which seemed to glow slightly under the harsh fluorescent lights of the lab. Fushimi tensed as he realized the slate was actually _glowing_ on it's own, and not the usual bluish green glow it sometimes had either. The colors were shifting and changing consistently: white, blue, green, red, yellow and all the colors in between. The glow seemed to steadily rise and fall in brightness. " _Almost like a heartbeat",_ he thought with a shudder. " _Of course something had to happen now",_ it had been almost three months since the death of the green king and the shattering of the Dresden Slate. SCEPTOR 4 had to handle the clean up and the press as usually, meaning they had to gather all the pieces of the slate to make sure no one else would try to use or recreate it.

Fushimi snapped to attention when his captain shifted slightly to acknowledge his subordinates. "I suppose we should have seen this coming." he mused. "It did seem very odd that all the clans still retained their power after the slate was destroyed." By his side lieutenant Awashima nodded. Things had been tense between the captain and the lieutenant during the first month after the green king. The other clansmen could tell that lieutenant Awashima was still upset that her captain put himself at such risk. While she didn't let her feelings affect her work ethic, no one could miss the stern tone in her voice anytime she addressed the captain. Fushimi on the other hand had the opposite problem. The lieutenant has been smothering him since he went undercover. She constantly checked on him and tried multiple times to get him to talk to a therapist after he refused to share his feelings about the situation. Fushimi of course had no interest in sharing his feelings and was annoyed; it wasn't as if he didn't write a report on the mission. Unlike his captain, the lieutenant's behavior towards him did not go back to normal over time. Even worse the other clansmen were joining in on her mothering habits. Fushimi missed back when a good portion of the clansmen were unsettled by him, it was a lot better than being forced to eat more under the disapproving stares of his co-workers.

"Lieutenant, I want you inform HOMRA of the situation. I will contact the silver king and the gold clansman. Fushimi-kun, I'd like you to keep a lookout on the web for any suspicious happenings in the city. We want to make sure the slate isn't putting out too much energy and causing people to gain powers." Captain Munakata ordered. "The rest of you carry on with your projects and cases, we will have a meeting with the other clans in the future about the situation". Fushimi and his fellow clansmen saluted their captain. "Yes, Sir!" Heading back to his desk, Fushimi tried to ignore the foreboding feeling creeping into him. He had work to do.


	2. I am So Much Older Than I Can Take

Shiro stretched his arms above his head and leaned back with a sigh. Eyes closed, he resisted the urge to rub his temples. All day he was distracted and nervous about the meeting of the clans. Since he heard the news about the Dresden Plate, he lost multiple papers, trailed off confusingly during lectures, and missed a staff meeting. It was times like this he wished he had stayed as a high school student.

Not that he didn't love being a teacher; Shiro was very fond of his students and his job. He always loved to teach people and see them learn new things. His students seemed very fond of him too. It was well known around the school that "Mr. German" was a great teacher. What Shiro didn't care for was the grading, meetings, and reports he had to write. He knew it wasn't nearly as extensive as when he was a scientist but it was harder since there wasn't the thrill of new research funding or wowing a group of skeptics. " _If only the lieutenant could see me now"_ he thought ruefully.

Shiro always knew the Gold King wouldn't live forever, but he never imaged it would hurt this much. He forgot what it was like to lose someone. He had spent most of his life on his own until the incident with the colorless king. He wouldn't trade this life for one of solitude, but he never missed the feeling of grief. Sighing again, Shiro straightened his papers and put them into his bag. " Weismann-sensei, if you keep frowning like that your face will stick!" Shiro smiled brightly and turned around to face a cheerful Kukuri. She was standing by the doorway of the teacher's room with Kuroh and Neko, who seemed to be arguing again. He laughed slightly, " I'll have to remember that in the future then miss Yukizome." Shiro missed spending time with Kukuri as friends, her ordinary cheerfulness was always a welcome break. Unfortunately due to his new position he needed to distance himself from all his old friends excluding his clansmen.

Speaking of which, by the door it appeared that Kuroh and Neko were arguing over whether she could hug him. Between the two of them they couldn't quite get Neko to understand why it would be inappropriate for a teacher to be so physically close to a student. No doubt she'd spend the evening pouting and glaring at the blue clan. Shiro was glad that they could at least convince her to respond to her other name instead of Neko in class. "Well if you will excuse us miss Yukizome I believe I have to discuss some classwork with Yatogami-kun and miss Ameno." Kukuri excused herself while the trio went down the hallway. Shiro had reserved a lecture room on the top floor for "research purposes". He walked happily while listening to the bickering of Neko and Kuroh.

"Kuroh can you grab the markers and papers for me" Shiro asked as they entered the room. It was a similar lecture room to the one that the clansmen met in during the JUNGLE incident, recommended by Kuroh. As much as Shiro and Neko wanted to have the meeting at White Rice Party's home base, Kuroh pointed out that there wouldn't be enough room to fit everyone. The three settled around the desk kept at the front of the room for teachers. Neko was amusing herself with snacks that Kuroh brought as a distraction for her; she hated meetings and often would derail them with her boredom. " Shiro, did you have any idea why this could have happened?" Kuroh asked. He was frowning harder than usual. Shiro missed the carefree expression that's been gracing Kuroh face since things settled down. He loved to watch Kuroh enjoy himself more, although he also loved Kuroh's serious expressions too. "No" Shiro responded. "To be honest I was a bit confused when everyone still had their powers. After thinking about it for a while I assumed that perhaps they would fade away or that their wouldn't be any more kings after the current active ones pass away, excluding myself of course".

While Shiro had long accepted his immortal fate, he still didn't like to think about it. He had a family and clansmen now, people he would outlive. Sometimes he'd think about Kuroh and Neko aging like the lieutenant did. The thought always made his eyes burn and his heart heavy. " _This isn't the time to get gloomy."_ he chastised. "I just hope that we can get through this meeting in one piece". He was nervous about leading such a meeting again. While he looked more professional this time around, he didn't think he was any wiser or more capable of playing leader when multiple other kings were involved. Munakata-san obviously had much more experience with being a leader and strategist, while Kushina-san was clearly a natural at her role and only got better as each day went by.

Shiro startled slightly when he felt a touch on his arm. Kuroh looked at him intently. " Do not worry, I know you can do this again." he said. Shiro was touched by the unwavering declaration from his clansmen. His heart raced slightly at the sight of Kuroh touching his arm. Living in close quarters with Kuroh was slowly getting to him as his feelings for Kuroh grew. Shiro longed to touch him constantly and was hyper aware of every time they brushed past each other in their tiny kitchenette or when their hands touched when Kuroh would bring him food or papers. Despite his long life on this earth, Shiro felt so inexperienced in the matters of crushes.

Shiro felt a slight twinge in the back of his mind and took a slow breath. Their guests had arrived.


	3. So Let This Life Begin

Seating himself beside Kusanagi-san, Misaki glared at the silver and blue King. HOMRA had filled the upper two rows of the lecture room while SCEPTER 4 sat in the front. There was an obvious divide between the two groups with two rows of empty seats between them. The Black Dog was standing slightly behind and to the left of his king, while the girl busied herself with trying to glare a hole into the blue king. While Misaki wasn't comfortable around her, he found he couldn't have a problem with someone who was equally suspicious of the blue king like himself. His own king and the blue king were also gathered at the front of the room with the silver king. Misaki watched as they theorized what the reforming of the Dresden Slate meant.

"We can only conclude that the slates cannot be completely destroyed as we thought". Misaki hated the way the blue king spoke, as if only he could have all the answer. "I don't know." chimed in the silver "call me Shiro" king. "Kusanagi-sans research and my own strongly implied that it was possible. Although I guess it technically did get destroyed. Perhaps it can only be done temporarily." " _Damn right!"_ Misaki thought. " _Kusanagi-san always knows what he's doing."_ Misaki didn't really trust the silver king either. The guy seemed childish when he was in a teenagers body, as if he didn't know what to do with any sort of authority over others. Now in the body of an adult, it only made him seem more unreliable. The fanciness of his clothes and the mature softness of his voice couldn't mask the hesitance in his eyes. Misaki isn't the smartest guy in the room, but even he can tell the man is inexperienced.

"Regardless we should focus in the most pressing issue at hand" Misaki watched as the blue king brought up pictures on the computer monitor in the center of the room. Images of the Dresden slate both in pieces and whole filled the screen. " _Of course the blue king has a slide show"_ Misaki thought sourly. "Our biggest concern is how this may affect our powers and the public." the dark haired man stated. "I agree." Anna said softly.

Misaki would always be amazed at how his king could speak so quietly but be heard and listened to by everyone. There was a silently powerful aura within her that reminded him of Mikoto-san. "We do not want a repeat of the incident the green king caused with random civilians receiving powers they cannot control." "Exactly." replied the blue king. The silver king chimed in with his original theory about kings going extinct with the plate destroyed. "Since I was wrong about that, I'm wondering if this resurrection of the plates has something to do with the fact that there are so few kings around. My original theory was backed by the evidence of no new kings following the deaths of the colorless, green, and gold kings." "It would have made sense until now" Anna replied. She turned to face the blue king. "You have a theory of your own I presume".

The blue king took a moment to adjust his glasses. "Yes, but it is an alarming one. Perhaps the silver king is right about no new kings being created while the slate was destroyed. Now that it is back to its original state, will new kings beginning to appear as well." Misaki's body went cold at the thought and the room became tense and quiet. No one really wanted to deal with whole new kings and clans after finally resolving the previous conflicts.

Misaki's attention broke when he heard a familiar "che" come from the front row. "Typically, were going to have to hunt down all the new kings and clans and gather intelligence on them" Saruhiko complained. Eager to have someone to take his frustrations out on, Misaki jumped at the chance to retort. "Oi! Monkey, you aren't the only ones who have to deal with all this!" Saruhiko turned around in his seat and gave Misaki a disgusted smile. "What would an idiot like you know about gathering intelligence?" his voice took on a teasing tone. "All you do is ride around on a skateboard and hit things." Misaki felt the long familiar rage well up within him, but before he could unleash it Kusanagi-san strongly gripped his shoulder. Meanwhile, the blue king's lieutenant chastised Saruhiko quietly.

The silver king decided that it was time to speak up and end the meeting. "Well it seems we won't get any answers until something happens." The silver king said with a smile. "In the meantime we can only observe and keep a lookout for any strange things happening. Luckily we've all seen how the late king's powers worked, so with the exception of the colorless king we'll know what to look for." "Actually, I had a question about that." Kusanagi-san spoke up. "Yes?" the silver king replied. "We all don't actually know the full extent of the gold kings power." "The gold kings power was indeed an odd one" the blue king spoke up. "You fought him?" Kusanagi-san was alarmed at the thought as was the silver king. "Not extensively" The blue king clarified. "He briefly revealed his power when I went to inspect Weismann's body after the airship crash." Misaki noticed the silver clan looked devastated at the thought of their king being dead. "He tested me slightly, it appears he has the power of cosmic projections." the king described his encounter with the gold kings power.

"I see" Kusanagi-san replied. "Won't all the other kings know if new kings awaken? Anna's sword of Damocles appeared when she first unlocked her power, wouldn't the same happen for the other kings?" "You are correct" the silver king said. Misaki's head was starting to hurt, this all seemed so complicated. "However, there's no telling how long the sword will last. Miss Kushina's awakening happened while she and your clansmen were in danger. While most kings awaken that way some have been known to awaken for a short amount of time. Plus there's the added possibility of a new king losing control like she almost did. We may want to hope that they awaken quietly".

The blue king spoke up with a pensive look on his face. "There is also the problem of the new kings clansmen. We have confirmed that clansmen can continue to keep their power until a new king is made and that their powers are typically weaker during this time period. We also have confirmed that it is possible for a clansman to become a new king as well. SCEPTOR 4 will closely monitor the remaining JUNGLE clansmen. Luckily we only have to worry about those who received a significant amount of the green kings power and not all the members who joined the game and didn't get a high enough level. Weismann can stay in contact with the Usagi clan. It is my understanding that a new gold king is significant to the late gold kings will."

"Ah, you are correct" the silver king responded. "The lieutenant left his company and wealth in temporary hands until a new gold king came along. In case the new gold king isn't as honorable as he was or worthy both the Usagi clan and myself can withhold everything." Misaki thought that the gold king was still a little crazy. " _Who the hell leaves everything to a stranger? Shouldn't he have left that stuff to the silver king?"_ "We won't have much to go on in the case of a colorless or gray king. We'll all keep in touch in the case of any new developments." The blue king said as his clansmen stood up. Misaki stretched his arms and stood as well. The meeting was over.


	4. Carry on Through

"Ah, Fushimi-kun you haven't eaten your vegetables." Reisi watched as Fushimi-kun aggressively shoved a piece of celery into his mouth. He would forever be amused by Fushimi-kun's little acts of rebellion. He was the only SCEPTOR 4 member who was seemingly unafraid of being reprimanded due to impoliteness or disobedience. Reisi found the boy to be refreshing, it helped that in spite of his occasional rebellion he followed important orders and did his work well.

Reisi knew that many people who met him assumed that he was unfeeling and took no joy in anything but work. He actually enjoyed being playful at times, just to see the shocked looks on people's faces. In the case of Fushimi-kun a look of frustration. He suspected miss Awashima also favored Fushimi-kun for similar reasons, but preferred to mother him after the green king incident. Reisi had to admit; he too felt the need to look after Fushimi-kun once they got him back to medical. The boy was already too thin; more injuries were the last thing he needed.

Reisi stood and moved to the front of the offices. SCEPTOR 4 had a majority of the cutting edge technology out on the market. The office was full of screens, desks, and papers. Everyone had been working in full force since the meeting they had three days prior. The Dresden Slate was still changing colors, but seemed to be favoring the colors of the deceased kings. It was Fushimi-kun's idea to develop a program that could search for the highest power output within city limits, which excluded the currently active kings. For a higher accuracy point, all the top members of SCEPTOR 4 had the program on their computer and would activate it on his signal.

It was decided that Reisi himself would remain in the room with them so there wouldn't be any delay once he sensed the other kings once they activated. "Sir." A voice behind him announced. Reisi turned to face miss Awashima. "I've spoken at length with the Usagi clan. Here are files on the inheritance of the gold king." "Thank you." he replied, grabbing the files from her hands. She returned to her own desk to work on a case. Reisi took a seat at the nearest desk and calmly glanced through the files. Whoever was the next gold king had a lot to learn before they could handle all of this work. He was surprised at just how much the gold king handled. There were splitter groups of the usagi clan around the world, all working to serve the gold king. Reisi was surprised at first when he learned about the inheritance, the gold king was known for being suspicious of others. However, the man was also very traditional. Daikaku Kojijou never married or had any children. The man only respected the silver king, and even on that case he rarely showed it. Reisi supposes the silver king had no use for the inheritance either; the man never seemed like the type to care about money or business.

Reisi was startled out of his thoughts and became alert. " _Its Time"_ he mused. "Everyone, begin the search programs! A king is awakening!" He watched as all of his trusted subordinates began typing furiously on their computers. Focusing on the feeling of power, Reisi tried to garner what direction the power was coming from. On a corner screen on the wall, the Dresden plate security camera showed the plate had heightened in brightness. The glow also was still shifting color.

Reisi pursed his lips. " _Something's not right. The power isn't coming from one place"_ "More than one king is awakening." he announced. "We haven't planned for this. All of you try your best to find one focal point of power." Reisi made his way to the front of the room, and faced his subordinates. He filled with pride watching them work. They were all so dedicated. Reisi felt slightly remorseful for them as well. " _We're going to have to do a lot more work than we thought."_


	5. We Move Toward a New World Order

Takeshi thought he'd never get used to this school. He had been attending Ashinaka high school for a few months now. Everyone always talked about how high school would be different and amazing, but he's pretty sure his friends at home never would've expected this. The school had tall gleaming buildings, wide expanding green lawns, and pristine stone pathways winding about. There were even some woods nearby with shrines for prayer. The dorms had kitchens, beds, closets, and changing wallpaper. The food was an amazing variety from within Japan and around the world. Takeshi had never known such luxuries in his entire existence. He wished his sister could be here with him, he felt guilty for living in such luxury while she worked constantly to support their miniscule family.

Takeshi startled slightly when he felt a hand roughly stroke his short black hair. "What are you doing looking so gloomy Gye-chan!" Takeshi looked up with a smile at his best friend. No one at their school understood Raiden Tetsuya's friendship with Takeshi Gyeong. Where as he was quiet and polite, Raiden was loud and blunt. Raiden had long hair bleached and dyed the color of corn. Like many of the other boys at school he towered over Takeshi and was one of the strongest students at the school. "Ah, it's nothing Raiden-kun. Are you finished with practice?" Raiden was the clean up hitter for the school's baseball team. He did a great job and was very popular with the guys at school. The girls were a different story. They were afraid of him, although Takeshi couldn't blame them. Raiden wasn't only tall but was also very muscular and could make some pretty scary expression when he was focused. Takeshi himself feared him, until their homeroom teacher recommended that Raiden show Takeshi around the school. It was during the tour that they learned they both shared a love for historical animes and their dorm rooms were across the hall from each other. Thus started the beginning foundations of their friendship.

"Yeah" he responded. "I hit two home runs today! Masahiro-sempai was pissed." The two friends filled each other in about their day as they made their way back to the dorms. They gathered in Takeshi's room, since his was cleaner and he always had ingredients for meals. Takeshi was a great cook and baker as well. He and his sister ran a sanuki udon shop at their home in the Kagawa Prefecture. Their small shop did well against the rigorous competition on Shikoku Island. Once Takeshi graduated and went to a good university, they planned to open a dual restaurant and bakery like their grandparents always dreamed of doing. Takeshi loved to bake and his sister Minoru loved to cook.

Raiden sprawled out on Takeshi's bed while Takeshi began washing the rice. "Ugh I don't know how you can do it", Raiden twisted his body to face his friend. "Cooking, schoolwork, and being a club president. I can barely do practice and schoolwork." Takeshi laughed as he placed the rice into the cooker and moved onto the vegetables and meat. "That's because I've been cooking for years, being president of the cooking club is easy." Takeshi never planned on joining any clubs until one of his classmates suggested he start one. Asama-san was a quiet girl and part of the student council. Takeshi was surprised when she approached him. She stuttered slightly but was adamant that he considered creating the club. It wasn't until later he learned that she was one of the council members.

Takeshi began plating the curry and placed it on the small table in the middle of the room. The wallpaper began to change into a dark sky with bright star constellations. Astronomy was always one of Takeshi's guilty pleasures. The endlessness of the universe and beauty of the planets and stars could hold his attention for hours. It was the only kid of science he enjoyed and was elated to learn that they could program the wallpaper into whatever image they liked. Raiden's was unsurprisingly an intricate series of lightning bolts, animated to strike the 'ground' whenever he needed to attend a class. Raiden joined him at the table and began eating immediately. Takeshi took a moment to observe.

This was his favorite time of the day. The walls detailed the stars he loved; his room was filled with the smell of a freshly made meal. A meal he shared with someone he cared about. The feeling of elation flowed through Takeshi like a steady river. He closed his eyes and embraced the feeling that was beginning to rise within him. Lost in the moment he didn't noticed how his heartbeat began to rise and his body began to glow. Raiden stopped eating in shock and stared at his glowing friend. He winced under the brutal pressure the glow seemed to give off as it started to spread further out. "What the hell!?"

Takeshi opened his eye at the yell, but found himself staring into the vastness of space. Panicked, he stood and turned around only to be met with more space. The inky blackness penetrated by the brightness of the planets and the stars filling it. Takeshi shook slightly as they all began to rotate around him, as if orbiting in his presence. "Raiden!" he called out. He didn't dare move or try to touch the planetary bodies surrounding him. He stared in fear as they began to slow down, stopping once they were in alignment. The galaxy around him began to fade, leaving behind the duller images of stars on his wall and the destroyed furniture of his room. Raiden was standing and staring at him in alarm. He began to move toward Takeshi but was startled by a knock on their door.


End file.
